Header Right

Main navigation

40 Practical Photography Assignments

Hollywood, 2011

Dear friend,

One of the most difficult things in photography is to stay motivated and inspired.

I know that I have hit “photographer’s block” many times in my career.

Sometimes it is good to try out different photography assignments— to push yourself outside of your comfort zone, try a new approach, and to take action. Simply sitting on your bum and thinking about photography won’t improve your photography. You can only re-spark your passion for photography by making photos, or doing something hands-on.

Here are a list of photographic assignments which I hope help you. Feel free to skip around, and choose the assignments which appeal to you:

1. 5 yes, 5 no

If you’re interested in street photography, often the fear of rejection is worse than the rejection itself.

The concept is simple: approach a bunch of strangers and ask for permission to make their portrait. You have to keep asking until you get 5 people to say “yes” and 5 people to say “no.”

You will discover it is harder to get a “no” than a “yes”.

If you’ve got all 5 “yes’s” but not 5 “no’s” — you need to purposefully go out and look for the scariest people you think will say “no.”

Purpose:

The purpose of this assignment is to help you face rejection. In life, photography, and everything else — we are slaves of fear. This will help you face your fear head-on.

2. “10 no”

If you’re really really afraid of getting rejected— try out this assignment (a variation of the 5 yes/5 no assignment).

Go out and try to get 10 people to reject having their photos as quickly as possible.

Purpose:

If you go out and try to find people to say “yes” to getting their portrait shot— you might become paralyzed. Instead, only approach people who you think look unfriendly and will say “no.”

Funny story — you will find that often the scariest/meanest looking people are the nicest (and vice-versa).

3. Exposure compensation

I am a big proponent of shooting in “P” (program mode). Essentially the camera chooses the aperture/shutter speed for you, as well as the exposure.

If you want to get better exposures in your photos (in P mode) — try experimenting with exposure-compensation.

Ask a person to stand in the bright sun, and take a series of different photos (with different exposure compensations):

0

+1

+2

+3

-1

-2

-3

Then look at your LCD screen, and look at the exposure of each photo. Then look at the real world — how does your exposure-compensations change how your photos end up looking?

Don’t get too nerdy with this — figure out what exposure-compensations work well for your camera, in different settings. Each camera thinks differently and has different exposure compensation modes. So treat this assignment as a way for you to better understand the light, and how your camera thinks.

Purpose:

If it is really bright outside, I generally photograph at -1 exposure-compensation, to make the skin tones of my subject look more natural, and also to darken the shadows. I love the dramatic look this gives my images.

Furthermore, if you’re shooting in the shade, you will often need to shoot +1 exposure-compensation to light your scene better.

But once again — experiment with different exposure-compensations, and figure out what works best for you.

4. 1,000 photos in a day

If you’re a photographer who only takes 1-2 photos of a scene and tends to run away, try this assignment.

The assignment: take 1,000 photos in a single day.

Purpose:

The purpose of this assignment is for you to learn how to “work the scene”. If you see a good scene, try to take at least 10 photos of each scene. This will allow you to capture better perspectives, angles, and moments.

I don’t want you to always take 1,000 photos everyday. But this might help you break through “photographer’s block.”

5. Eye contact/no eye contact

When I’m shooting street photography, I’m not sure whether a photograph with eye contact or without eye contact will be better.

Solution? Try to get both.

If I’m shooting candidly, I will get close to my subject, and take multiple photos, until they notice my presence. Then I wait for them to notice me, and then I take a photograph when they make contact.

Then when I go home, I have the decision of choosing between two version of a photo: one with eye contact, and one without. Sometimes eye contact works better, sometimes it doesn’t.

Purpose:

There is a saying that “eyes are the windows to the soul.” I generally find photos with eye-contact to be more compelling, soulful, and intense for the viewer.

However at the same time, sometimes having photos with the subject looking away from the camera gives you a more moody feel.

I often like to study famous (painted) portraits of people in the past for inspiration. Look at the paintings with eye contact, and without.

6. Ask your subject to look up, down, left, right

If you approach a stranger, and ask permission to make their portrait (or if you’re photographing a model) — it is hard to direct your subject.

One tip I learned: ask them to look in different directions.

For example, ask your model to look into the camera, and don’t smile. Then ask them to look up, down, left, and right.

Often people have a “better side.” Not only that, but by having your subject look up and down, you change the mood of the photo.

When your subject is looking up, they look more confident, encouraged, and powerful.

When your subject is looking down, they look more downtrodden, depressed, and negative.

Another tip: ask your subject to look at your hand while you’re photographing them. Then move your hand, and see how their eyes track your hand.

Purpose:

Changing the eye and head position of your subject will change the emotion of the photo. Experiment with different head positions with your subject, and you will have more photos to choose from.

7. Only photograph things on the ground

When it comes to photography, we often just photograph what is in front of us, at eye-level.

Yet we never look down, and we never loop up.

As a simple assignment, do a photo project of just photographing stuff on the ground. You will find lots of interesting subject-matter if you look closely enough.

Purpose:

The world is a rich and beautiful place to take photos. Sometimes we complain that there is “nothing to photograph.” Yet in reality — we’re just not looking hard enough.

8. Take at least 10 photos of each scene

I mentioned this tip a bit earlier — but the mistake we make as photographers is that we’re easily satisfied with 1-2 photos, and we move on.

The problem with only taking 1-2 photos (and then checking our LCD screen) — we don’t push ourselves. When in doubt, try to photograph 25% more than you think you need to photograph.

This will force you to be more creative. You will try to photograph your scene from different distances (close, far) and from different angles (left, middle, right). You can also switch up your positioning (crouching, standing, or tippy-toe).

Purpose:

It is rare to see a good photo-moment. Don’t settle with just 1-2 photos. “Work the scene” — and try to take at least 10 photos of each scene. Then you will push your creative boundaries, and be more likely to make a good photo.

9. Limit yourself to only 36 photos in a day

For this assignment, you’re only allowed to take 36 photos in a day (same amount of photos in a roll of film).

This exercise will help you learn restraint. It will balance out some of the other assignments which encourage you to take more.

Purpose:

If you only had 36 photos you could take in a day, how much more selective would you be with your shooting? What superfluous photos would you not shoot?

I also find that by taking fewer photos, I appreciate each scene more.

You can do this assignment on a digital camera, or on a film camera.

10. Shoot 1 street corner for an hour

In street photography, we’re impatient. Rather than sticking in one good area and waiting for our subjects to come to us, we run around (often wasting our energy) to just find a few good photos.

The solution: find an interesting street corner, don’t move, and photograph it for an hour.

Purpose:

The purpose of this assignment is to realize that it can be more effective to find a good scene, background, or area — and wait for your subjects to come to you.

Not only that, but if you stay put in one area— you will get to know the area better. You will observe the flow of subjects, and get a feel of a place better. Not only that, but you will be more “invisible” in the scene— people will ignore you.

11. Delete all the photos from your social media account

An occasional purge is good for our physical, mental, and spiritual health.

Try to do this every once in a while: delete all the photos from your social media, and start from scratch.

Don’t delete the original photos. Keep them on your hard drive, print them out, or archive them.

However if you have a lot of photos cluttering your social media account, make a practice of doing a 100% purge. Delete all the photos (or mark them private), and then re-start from scratch.

Purpose:

Often we let our past work prevent ourselves from innovating and creating new future work.

Purge your past. And start refreshed.

12. Go a month without using social media

Often as photographers we fall victim to the “social media” treadmill — of always uploading a photo everyday, just to feel relevant. We want it for the likes, the comments, the new followers. Yet we get addicted to social media like heroin. Without our daily “hit” of external affirmation — we feel our photography is pointless.

Yet photography should be a personal pursuit. Why care about what others think about your photos? How do you feel about your own photos?

Uninstall all the social media apps from your phone (don’t worry you can re-install them after a month). Don’t upload any photos, look at anyone else’s photos, and try your best not to cheat.

Purpose:

By “fasting” from social media from a month — you will get a better sense of why you make photos. And I can guarantee you, you will feel less stressed and anxious to keep up with the “social media rat race.”

13. Only shoot black and white for a year

We don’t see the world in monochrome. Black and white is an abstraction in the world. That is why it looks more “artistic” to the average person. It is novel, unique, and different.

However it takes a while for you to train your eye to see the world in monochrome.

Many photographers shoot black and white their entire life, and still never master it. I’ve also found that if I switch between black and white and color too often— I can never learn how to really see the world in one.

The assignment is to shoot only black and white for an entire year. You can shoot RAW+JPEG with a black and white preview. And perhaps you can just use the black and white JPEG’s. If not, apply a simple black and white preset to all of your RAW photos (upon importing them).

Purpose:

How would you visualize the world in monochrome? I’ve found myself looking more for emotions, mood, smoke, shadows, lines, graphical elements, and minimalism.

This will be different for you — but learn how to see in monochrome.

14. Only shoot color for a year

The opposite assignment to the prior one; shoot only color for a year.

To see the world in color is different than seeing the world in black and white.

Personally, I’ve found shooting color to be more difficult than shooting black and white. Why? Because color leads to more complexity. You need to compose and frame a scene well, but also think about the color-combinations of a scene.

Not only that, but different colors evoke different moods and emotions.

Monochrome is easy to use because it reduces and removes distractions. Color introduces more complexity and distractions.

I would personally recommend most photographers to first try to master monochrome before taking on color photography.

Purpose:

Color photography also requires your exposures to be better, and for you to shoot in better lighting conditions. For color photography, try to shoot sunrise and sunset (golden hour), or use a flash.

Train your eyes to become sensitive to different colors— and play and have fun with it. See how you can mix different colors in a scene, whether they be complementary colors or contrasting colors.

15. Only shoot JPEG for a month

RAW and post-processing is a blessing and a curse. The problem is that many of us modern photographers over-rely on fancy post-processing techniques to improve our (mediocre) photos.

I’m guilty of it — I’ve added HDR to my photos, added selective color, intense vignettes, and “overly-processed” many of my photos (thinking that they would make the photos better).

But no matter how much you polish a turd, it will still be a turd.

Shoot only JPEG for a month.

If you’re really anxious, shoot JPEG+RAW (but only use the JPEG’s) for a month.

Purpose:

This way you can’t rely on fancy post-processing techniques to “salvage” your photos. A great photo shouldn’t require any excessive post-processing.

16. Only shoot with your smartphone for a month

We often make the excuse that we don’t always have our cameras with us. I know personally when I owned a DSLR, it would be a pain in the ass to carry with me everywhere I went.

But today we’re blessed by modern technology— especially with the smartphone. The smartphone is the ultimate camera— it is always with us, fits in our front pocket, and can also be used to edit/post-process/publish our photos.

If you have a big bulky camera and never take photos, take this challenge upon yourself: only shoot with your smartphone for a month. Lock up your “real” camera in a drawer, and see how you can be the most creative with just your smartphone.

Purpose:

The purpose of this assignment is to realize that photography is less about the gear — more about your personal vision, and how you see the world. The tool isn’t as important as your eye.

This assignment might also teach you the importance of just always having your camera with you, ready, and prepared to click.

17. Stick to one camera, one lens for a year

We’re rich. We live in a culture of abundance. Most photographers I know aren’t starving. Most photographers have an over-abundance of cameras, lenses, and gear.

If you’re a photographer who has too much “choice anxiety” from owning too much gear— only stick to one camera, one lens for a year. Lock up your other gear in a drawer, better yet, sell it or give it away to friends.

Purpose:

If you really want to hone in your photographic vision; you don’t want to be distracted by gear. Also it takes a long time to get to know one camera and one lens/focal length quite well.

By sticking with consistent gear, you will have fewer gear distractions — which will give you more creative focus.

18. Only shoot horizontal, vertical, or square for a month

I believe in “creative constraints” — by having fewer options, you are forced to be more creative.

For example, take framing. Try to only shoot horizontal (landscape), vertical (portrait), or square-format for a month.

Purpose:

Framing and composition is all about knowing what to leave out of the frame.

Restrict yourself to one orientation for a month — and you will find more visual consistency with your work. And you will be forced to compose more creatively.

19. Only shoot one square block for a month

With unlimited options, we become paralyzed. We don’t know what direction to take our creative work.

Restrict yourself geographically. For a month, only shoot one square block (both sides). This way, you will really have to dig deep, and find something very interesting in that one square block.

The benefit of this project is that you know exactly where to shoot. Just one specific area. And I think it is better to get to know one area very well, rather than knowing a lot of different areas superficially.

Purpose:

Being a great photographer isn’t about traveling the world, to exotic places, and making interesting photos overseas.

Being a great photographer is making the best out of what you have. For not complaining where you live; and being the best photographer in your own home town.

20. Shoot everyday for a month

The only way to become a better photographer is to shoot more. The more you shoot, the more feedback you will get, and the more connected you will feel with the world.

For a month, take at least 1 photo everyday. It can be with your smartphone, DSLR, or whatever camera you have.

Just make sure it is something personally-meaningful to you. Don’t just take the photo for the sake of it. Take a photo everyday of something that stirs your heart. That makes your soul sing.

Purpose:

The Zen masters recommended having a “daily practice.” By repetition, we reach a deeper understanding of “truth.”

In photography, we can read a hundred photo theory books, and still not learn anything. We only learn through taking photos, repetition, feedback, critique, and constantly seeking to improve ourselves.

Don’t put pressure on yourself that everyday the photo has to be great. But just build the habit.

21. Don’t shoot for a month

To balance out the prior experiment; try to go a month without taking any photos.

You’re not allowed to take photos for a month.

Purpose:

Ironically enough, this assignment might be the best way to re-invigorate your passion for photography. Why? We take photography for granted. But when something is taken away from us — we appreciate it more.

22. Shoot “selfies” for a week

Many of us complain that we don’t have interesting subjects to photograph.

Not true; your best subject is yourself. Because you’re always available, and you won’t say “no” to yourself.

There are different ways you can shoot ‘artistic selfies’ of yourself. Photograph your shadow, reflection, or put your camera on a tripod and setup a scene and shoot yourself.

Purpose:

To photograph yourself is an incredibly intimate experience. It is an experience that allows you to be comfortable on the other side of the camera. Not only that, but it makes you realize that no matter what, you can always photograph something — who better than yourself?

23. Have your portrait (professionally) shot

I learned this lesson from Sara Lando — if you don’t like being photographed, have another photographer (professionally) shoot your headshot. You will learn what is comfortable (and what isn’t comfortable) being a subject.

Purpose:

If you are a photographer, yet you don’t like having your own photo taken, you debilitate yourself. You assume everyone else doesn’t like having their photo taken (not true).

The secret is how can you make a photo of others (and of yourself) that makes the subject comfortable, at ease, and happy to be photographed?

24. Shoot with a focal length (you’re uncomfortable with) for a week

We all have our preferences for a certain lens or focal length. If you want to push your creative boundaries, shoot with a focal length that you are very unfamiliar or uncomfortable with for a week.

If you’re a 28mm guy, try shooting only with a 200mm lens for a week. If you’re usually a 200mm telephoto type of person, try a 35mm lens. If you usually shoot with a 50mm lens, try a 28mm lens.

Purpose:

By shifting our focal length, we shift our perspective, how we see the world, and how we approach our subjects.

By pushing ourselves outside of our comfort zone for a week, you will gain a new perspective and also perhaps find more gratitude for the focal length you’re already comfortable with.

Or better yet, you might find a new focal length you prefer— that can help you be more creative and innovative with your work.

25. “.7 meter challenge” (1-arm length challenge)

I learned this assignment from my buddy Satoki Nagata. If you’re uncomfortable getting close to your subjects, pre-focus your lens to .7 meters (about 1-arm length distance), and only shoot that distance for a month.

Purpose:

This assignment will force you to get physically and emotionally closer to your subjects.

You don’t need to shoot all your photos candidly. Ask for permission.

The more comfortable you’re shooting at a close distance— the easier it will be for you to take a step back.

26. Decapitate heads for a week

I often find photos of hands, feet, or body gestures more interesting than faces. So the assignment is to take photos of your subjects without including their faces/heads in the photo.

Purpose:

Try it out— for a week “decapitate” your subjects (don’t photograph their faces). This will force you to see the other characteristics and attributes of your subject on a deeper level.

27. Buy a mannequin (and use it as a test subject)

I learned this assignment from my friend Charlie Kirk — if you want to learn how to make better portraits, how to better use studio/flash, or how to frame — buy a mannequin as a test subject.

The great thing about having a mannequin is that you will always have a willing subject.

Try using different focal lengths, different settings, different apertures, shutter-speeds, different lighting setups, and anything else you want to experiment with.

Purpose:

This will allow you to better understand how to use your camera technically, how light (especially artificial light) works. Not only that, but you will have a forever patient subject at your disposal (whenever).

28. Only shoot with a flash for a week

There is a bias in photography against shooting with a flash. People say it looks “harsh” and unnatural” when compared to using natural light.

Yet the flash helps us overcome difficult lighting situations. It gives us more freedom to shoot at different points in the day, when the light might not be so nice.

For a week, experiment taking photos only with a flash. You will discover how the flash works during the day, in the shade, indoors, and other effects it might have on your images.

Purpose:

Having a flash is a good tool in photography. It can help you open up creative doors and opportunities. It will give you more freedom to shoot at all points during a day.

You don’t always need to shoot with a flash, but try to learn it to the best of your ability, and you can use it in special situations (or in all situations).

29. Put together a photo album

Today’s world is (mostly) digital. In photography, we spend 99% of our efforts sharing our photos online. Very rarely do we print our work, arrange and edit our work, and create physical objects with our photography.

Buy a cheap photo album at the store or online. Print a bunch of your photos as small 4×6’s. Then put together a photo album.

Do it with your partner, children, or friends. Make a theme, concept, or a story. Have fun. Spread the 4×6 prints on the floor, and figure out what kind of pairing, sequencing, and flow you want to add to your album.

Have fun.

Purpose:

Handling physical prints is a different experience than just looking at them on your computer or phone. The physicality of photography adds another dimension — for us to be more creative, to find more by-chance connections, and for us to be more engaged with others.

Making a photo album is a nice communal activity — something that families did a lot in the past. Making photo albums can help us re-connect ourselves with the past, but also create physical documents that will be well-preserved into the future.

30. Print your portfolio

Most of us have our portfolios online. Few of us have printed portfolios.

Look at your entire library of images, and ask yourself: Which of these 10 photos represent who I am as a photographer?

Then print out those photos at any size you like. Figure out how you would like the photos to be sequenced. Then carry them around with you, and share them with your friends. Ask them to sequence your photos according to their emotion and feeling.

Learn to show your photos as prints, rather than just a phone or computer. See how people react differently to your photos, and see how it feels different for you as a photographer.

Purpose:

Photos don’t exist until they’re printed. When photos exist in atoms, we have a deeper connection with them as humans. When we can hold a photo, or a memory in our hands— it feels more real. We appreciate it more, and we feel more connected with them.

I find a nagging sense of incompletion if I don’t print my photos. I appreciate my photos on my computer, but I love them when they’re printed.

This assignment will also give you a good opportunity to re-evaluate your entire body of work and ask yourself: What photos really show who I am?

31. Give away a photo everyday (for a week)

I feel the best gift you can give others as a photographer is prints. Why? Because prints are meaningful, easy to transport, and relatively inexpensive to print.

As an assignment, print out a bunch of your photos, and for a week, give out at least 1 print a day (to a stranger, friend, your barista, family member, etc). See how it affects their mood, and your own mood.

Purpose:

Photos are about sharing moments, art, and history. Share a little bit of your own soul by giving away your photos. You might discover that giving away your photos for free is more meaningful than selling them.

32. Start your own photography blog, and blog consistently for 30 days straight

I’m not a big fan of traditional “social media” – because you have no control. You’re a slave to the platform, and you don’t have as much ownership and creative opportunities.

When you create your own blog, you have more flexibility. You can publish your photos, text, and ideas in different format. If you own the blogging platform (I recommend wordpress.org) you then really own your content.

Blogs are great because they are historical documents of our past. Blogging is more difficult than sharing photos on social media— but it is also more personally-meaningful.

Furthermore, if you have a blog, it is easier indexed by Google. And anyone with a web browser can access your work — rather than only people on a certain social media platform.

The assignment is to start your own blog, and blog consistently for 30 days straight. It can be about anything. You can just upload a photo everyday, upload photos that inspire you, or share some personal stories behind your favorite images. Don’t take it too seriously— but try it for a consistent month.

Purpose:

By making a blog, you gain more ownership of your own photography, creativity, and work on the internet. If you’re a slave to a social media platform, your influence is very limited— and you don’t have as many different ways to express yourself creatively.

I see blogs as the future of photography — don’t be left behind.

33. Write down a list of photographic subjects you don’t like to photograph

How do you know what your “style” is in photography? For me, it is knowing what you don’t like to photograph.

For this assignment, figure out what genres of photography you dislike. Write them down, and simply avoid taking those photos.

Then by process-of-elimination — figure out what kind of photographer you are (based on what you don’t like to photograph).

Most people I know who are interested in street photography don’t like to take photos of sunsets and landscapes. People I know who like to shoot flowers don’t like to take photos of people. Photographers who like to shoot monochrome generally dislike shooting color (and vice-versa).

Purpose:

Find out who you are via subtraction and process-of elimination. Treat your photographic style the same.

What do you not like photographing? Then just don’t photograph it — photograph the opposite.

34. Intentionally try to take “shitty” photos for a week

One of the biggest barriers in our photography is that we always try to take really good photos. But it is rare that we make good photos.

So flip the concept upside down — try to intentionally shooot “shitty photos” for a week. Get rid of your concepts of good composition, framing, and light. Just take shitty photos of whatever you find interesting.

Then after a week, see if you feel more loose in your photography, less “blocked” creatively. Do you take yourself less seriously? Are you having more fun?

Purpose:

Perfectionism ruins us. Seek to make “good” photos. And in order to do so give yourself permission to make bad photos.

35. Create your own photography portfolio website

If you want to be more serious with your photography (and taken more seriously) — make a photography portfolio website. It can just be your firstnamelastnamephoto.com (or better yet, firstnamelastname.com).

Make your own photography website, and put on your 3 best projects (restrict each project to your 10 best photos). This way, you will be able to think more about long-term projects, rather than getting swept away in the social media madness of just uploading a single (random) photo a day.

Purpose:

When you pass away, what kind of body of work do you want to leave behind? Do you really think that your social media profile will exist after you pass away? Will anyone even look at it?

Having a website (instead of just having social media) is better— but not the best.

Aim on creating a body of work, and several bodies of work — then publish them as books.

36. Buy one photo book a month (for a year)

I’m a big proponent of photography books and education. For a simple motto, remember the phrase: “Buy books, not gear.”

Gear quickly gets outdated. A great photo book will increase in value over time — both monetarily and its value to you as a photographer.

I recommend trying to invest in at least one photo book a month (for a year). You don’t need to buy an expensive photo book — invest in a book that you plan on re-reading over and over again.

I also recommend buying photo books whenever you have the urge to buy a new piece of gear. Why? Photo books will actually help improve your photography, and the novelty of a new photo book will inspire you.

Purpose:

Every photographer needs inspiration from somewhere. Most of us get our inspiration online, on social media.

There are great photographers online, but if you really want to learn the work of the masters, invest in photo books. Photographers spend many years, thousands of dollars, to create their own book. Therefore you’re more likely to get better images in a photo book, than just when looking online.

A good photo book will last for your entire life— and will always be a great source of inspiration for you.

37. Look at all the portfolios of all the Magnum photographers

You are what you eat. If you look at the work of great photographers, you will aspire to make great photographs.

I also go this assignment from my buddy Charlie Kirk — go to the magnumphotos.com website and study all the portfolios of the Magnum photographers.

Write a list of which photographers you admire. Analyze their work, and ask yourself, “Why” you like their work.

Furthermore, when you find a photographer whose work really speaks to you, buy all their photo books, watch all their YouTube interviews, and learn as much about them as you can from them.

Purpose:

The more great images we look at, the more inspired we will be to make great photos. By analyzing great compositions and images, we will subconsciously take better photos when we’re shooting.

Also you will find there are a lot of Magnum photographers whose work you don’t “get” or “like.” That is fine — just think to yourself, “What about their work do I not like? And why would other people like their work?”

38. Attend a photography workshop

I think photography workshops are great— because you get a “shortcut” in your learning and education.

For a workshop, you get a distilled source of information from your teacher — often in a few days or a week.

I personally think that photography workshops are a much better “bang for the buck” than photography schools. And they’re much shorter, focused, practical, and hands-on.

Find a photography workshop on a topic that interests you. And know that you’re investing your money into your education — always the best investment for your money.

Purpose:

If you want practical instruction in photography, to learn, have any questions addressed, attend a workshop or two.

39. Learn how to process black and white film

I don’t think digital is better than film, nor is film better than digital. They’re different. But more similar than dissimilar.

I feel the process of shooting film, and learning how to develop it, makes you appreciate the art and process of photography much more.

When I started off in digital photography, I took for granted that you could take a photo and instantly see it on the back of your LCD screen.

Shooting film has taught me patience, appreciation for the process, and the tactile hands-on approach.

If you’ve never processed your own black and white film, give it a try. There are tons of YouTube tutorials on how to do it. By processing your own black and white photos, you will feel a lot more connected with your images. You might fall in love with the process and the magic.

Purpose:

After shooting film for several years, I came back to digital photography with new enthusiasm. I appreciated digital photography so much more — in terms of the convenience, the flexibility, and the modern technology.

If you’ve never processed your film before, give it a go. And not only that, but try to print your photos in a darkroom at least once — the experience might totally change how you view photography.

40. Photograph only hand gestures for a day

I think that great photos tend to have two things: 1) Great composition and 2) Great emotion.

We all know how to make better compositions. Few of us know how to capture emotions.

A practical way to capture better emotions: capture hand-gestures and body language of your subjects.

So for a whole day, do nothing but photograph people doing interesting hand-gestures. Not only that, but afterwards, look at your photos (with hand-gestures in them), and mimic the hand-gesture. This will help you connect emotionally, and empathize with your subjects.

Purpose:

Photos of people just walking (and doing nothing with their hands) tends to be boring. Hand-gestures are much more dynamic, interesting, and emotional.

Much of communication is body-language and hand-gesture based. Photos are silent and don’t say words. But hand-gestures do.

Conclusion

I hope this list of 40 photography assignments will help inspire and uplift you. It is hard to stay motivated in your photography — but know that photography isn’t a race. Photography is a personal journey for yourself. You want to take your time, enjoy the process, and gain personal meaning through your photography.

Never compete with any other photographer. Don’t compare yourself to other photographers by how many followers/likes you have on social media.

Only gauge your progress in photography by your own standards of yourself, and by your own gut.

Know that dips in motivation in photography are natural — and part of the game. What matters the most is how are you going to overcome these mental blocks and barriers in your photography. Are you going to let them encourage you to try harder? Or are you going to give up photography all-together.

Tenacity and staying in the game of photography is the goal. Never give up friend. Let’s stick in photography together for the long-haul.

If you want to stay inspired when you’re shooting on the streets, pick up a copy of “Street Notes” — essentially a workshop that can fit into your back pocket.

Many of the assignments in the book are mirrored in this article, but I’ve personally found it much more motivating to have a printed book (than just looking at information on my phone). Plus there are lots of space for you to journal, reflect, and mark your progress.